00:00Chief Executive Officer of AmCham, Nirad Tiwari, in responding to Trinidad and Tobago's removal from the EU blacklist,
00:08says it strengthens the country's standing in the international financial system
00:13and should enhance confidence in cross-border banking relationships.
00:17Tiwari further tells the Morning Edition, Trinidad and Tobago, as well as CARICOM,
00:23must be more strategic in how they engage international tax and regulatory systems,
00:29with multiple frameworks emerging.
00:31He says the region must ensure it has a meaningful seat at the table.
00:37We should ensure that on matters such as these that are very, very important to us
00:42as a country that relies heavily on FDI, as a country that is integrally involved in global trade,
00:49that we are not simply waiting to respond, but we are an active participant
00:55in shaping the various frameworks and the various assessments that come out of this.
01:02So I would encourage the government to consider where we are now and whether we need to do more.
01:07Tiwari says while future gas prospects are promising, they will not deliver immediate relief.
01:14We cannot and should not only rely on that.
01:18One is that it's not guaranteed to happen.
01:20It's quite likely to happen, but it's not guaranteed to happen.
01:23But two, even if it does, we need to build the rest of the economy, other sectors in the economy.
01:28And to do that, as you said, we need to have a more friendly environment to do in business,
01:32from the person who is starting a business for the first time to those who are already in business
01:38and will seek to reinvest and create new businesses and expand existing businesses.
01:42However, he tells us, efforts to access greater gas supplies could strengthen investor confidence
01:50and improve economic sentiment, especially if government advances practical reforms
01:56such as long-promised digital transformation in administration operations in customs and immigration, for example.
02:04It would improve efficiency and competitiveness.
02:08So if we could see some of those things being addressed in the next few months,
02:15you're likely to see an increase in confidence and therefore the business environment could start to change somewhat.
02:23Nicole M. Romany, TV6 News.
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